Vazquez Mota
Josefina Vazquez Mota, left, presidential hopeful from Mexico's ruling conservative National Action Party (PAN), gestures next to a supporter before casting her ballot during the primary election to choose the party's presidential candidate in Mexico City Sunday. The winner of the primary race will face leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and former governor Enrique Pena Nieto from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), who is leading in polls ahead of the July 1 general election. Reuters/Edgard Garrido

(Reuters) - Voters from Mexico's ruling conservative party looked set to back their first woman presidential candidate on Sunday, early primary results showed, setting her up for a battle against the opposition front-runner.

Newspaper Reforma said with 42 percent of supporters' votes counted, former Education Minister Josefina Vazquez Mota had 58 percent of the vote compared to runner-up Ernesto Cordero's 32 percent in the National Action Party (PAN) primary. Televisa's leading newscaster cited similar numbers from Vazquez Mota's team, which could not immediately confirm the numbers.

To avoid a second round vote on Feb. 19, one candidate either has to win more than 50 percent of the votes or have at least 37 percent and a 5 percentage point lead over the runner-up.

If confirmed, the win will pit Vazquez Mota against telegenic Enrique Pena Nieto from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled Mexico for most of the last century, in a July vote.

National opinion polls show Vasquez Mota as the PAN's best chance against Pena Nieto, but she still trails him by around 20 percentage points.

Cordero, a former finance minister, was seen as the favorite of President Felipe Calderon.

(Reporting by Michael O'Boyle and Miguel Angel Gutierrez; Editing by Stacey Joyce)

Mexico Mexico Mexico